Hardik Pandya says “I was the bad boy of Indian cricket at that time” after his suspension in 2019. Pandya has turned out to be one of the decade’s best finds. He was even responsible for the team ending their search for an elusive all-rounder. Pandya’s journey has not been all smooth. Also, with a major wobble coming in the form of a suspension by the BCCI in 2019. Pandya and Rahul were expelled by the board. It is for their insensitive remarks on a TV show. Pandya missed a large part of India’s tour of Australia and New Zealand. It made an impact off the field as well with the public perceiving him in a different way. He lost several endorsement deals as well.
Pandya revealed the testing times. He endured after the suspension was lifted. He struggled particularly at the start of the 2019 IPL. Despite coming into the competition.
“When I heard I was going to suspend, a lot of cricketers who knew me personally. He knew what kind of an individual I am. Also, they went out and spoke about it, which is fine. I heard lots of people saying, ‘Hardik’s done, he won’t be able to cope with this.’ Because I was the bad boy of Indian cricket at that time,” Hardik Pandya said.
Hardik Pandya
In addition, Hardik Pandya set the competition land. After overcoming the starting battle. He went on to amass 402 runs at a strike rate of 191.42 at IPL 2019. Apart from that, Pandya contributed with the ball as well with 14 wickets. Moreover, the Mumbai Indians clinched their 4th title.
Hardik Pandya says, “At the Chinnaswamy [Bengaluru], while practicing, I was missing the ball by this much (shows a wide gap). Because when this is not right (points to head) and when you question yourself, things just go wrong. That day I cried during training because there was a lot of emotion. Because of how I was portrayed [after the talk-show incident]. I was never that individual. I was not able to concentrate on my sport because there was a lot of expectation from myself, leave anyone else,” Hardik Pandya said.
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